Well that was an interesting week. We had attacks, injuries, cage matches, title matches, and a whole bunch of crap in between. For my money Smackdown again was the better of the two offerings. Raw has really been stagnant with little to no new developments or turns leading us into the Rumble. Smackdown continues to turn up the heat despite the smaller, less marquee roster. Both shows offered some good and some bad this week. Here were my takes on what those were.

Cedric Alexander vs. Brian Kendrick - This Cruiserweight match was very good. This didn’t play into either guy’s current story, but it didn’t hurt them. Dar watched from the back, and I guess Alicia did her terrible acting at ringside, but the in-ring work is what landed this here. These two guys busted their asses, and it ended with a SICK lumbar check for the win. Cedric avoiding Fox after the match was a nice touch.

Neville Attack on Swann - Usually I am not a fan of sneak attacks before a match starts. Also, given they did a similar angle with Sasha and Nia this could have been bad. However, these guys made it good. It felt real and surprising. It made sense given Swann embarrassed Neville last week. I like that these guys aren’t having non-title or tag matches against each other every week, but they are still staying relevant. I would be happier if they hadn’t had any matches at all, but it is WWE so that wasn’t going to happen. I thought this segment added a nice bit of fire to their match at the Rumble.

The Club vs. Cesaro and Sheamus - I enjoyed the work in this match. I thought all 4 guys brought...IT! There was a logical reason to think a title change was possible, so the near falls were more impactful. Also, this is the first time I can remember a Dusty finish where it’s the heels that get screwed over, so that was a nice touch. All in all I am looking forward to another match and hopefully the reign of the Club getting underway because it is long overdue.

Honorable Mention - No Authority figures at all.

Charlotte/Bayley Promo - This was a train wreck. You want to know the worst result of over scripting talent? Just watch this segment. Charlotte had moments, but she was not on her A game. Also, don’t ever offer to read something unless you know you can. It’s a really bad look on live TV when you scramble to try to recover from that. Then Bayley came out and…well…Bayley is not good on promos. This has been a weak point of hers all the way through NXT. She’s gotten a little better but still feels nervous and flustered. Those poems were horrible and made a loveable character seem dumb and contrived. I give them credit for really pushing the “Bayley as a fan vs. Charlotte as a legacy” angle. I actually really enjoy that they are going in that direction with the build. This was just not a good way to do it.

Titus vs. The New Day - Why is this happening? Are we that bereft of tag team talent and ideas that we can only take our 3 man tag team and feud them with a singles guy? These bits haven’t been funny or clever. Sticking Titus next to New Day only makes his total lack of charisma stand out and sucks the charisma out of the New Day. This is a pairing that has only made both sides look worse. The only direction this could go would be Titus making a 3 man group. Maybe a new Prime Time Playas. He just doesn’t have the IT factor for a singles push.

Opening Segment - I am never a fan of segments like these. First off that was a waste of a Brock appearance. He had little to no impact on the show, and once he was done he was forgotten. Second it never works when you just have all these people come out constantly interrupting. It always looks like a giant cluster and nobody really gets over. We had Brock beat up your “Main Event guys” and a tease of a match that isn’t happening anytime soon. If I were a regular fan nothing here would make me care about the rest of the show or the Royal Rumble.

Dishonorable Mention - The backstage skit with Rollins, Reigns, and Zayn made Sami look like a total moron. You have been telling a story of him as a lovable underdog and a guy with a never give up attitude. Now on TV you make him a bad comedy act? I get the segment was a play on a Jericho podcast when they said Sami acts like that in putting together a match, but why damage his on screen character for a joke? His part of this segment reminded me of old Santino bits, and that’s not a comparison you should want the fans making.

Steel Cage Match - This match was what a Main Event should be. The work wasn’t flawless, but it was very good. There was a build, a story, a reason for a cage. There was a legit question as to who would win. In the end they put a finish to the Alexa/ Becky/La Luchadora angle, all while starting up a new program with Mickie and Becky. It was very entertaining and left me wanting to know where they go next.

Miz vs. AJ - I loved everything here. You took your two biggest heels and gave them a conflict. They both feel they are the best and went toe to toe to prove it. In the promo to set this up Miz showed again why he is the best on the mic in the company right now. If and when AJ turns face there is a great program to be had here. Obviously the finish was designed to not give away too much for free. They kept both guys strong but wet my appetite for what this could be.

Kings Court - I was incredibly skeptical when this segment began. I saw Lawler in tights with no shirt and assumed we were headed down a really bad road. Then Ziggler came out and did the silent treatment, despite talking at length on Talking Smack the previous week. Then this segment took a very unexpected turn. Ziggler did a very slow and measured promo and said he had footage of his own. He proceeded to show footage of his repeated elbow drops on Lawler that occurred moments before his cardiac arrest. I had totally forgotten Ziggler was in the ring with him before that. This was a brilliant use of real life history to build a new heel. Ziggler was almost proud of what he did. Then the cherry on the sundae occurred as Ziggler was leaving he delivered a superkick right to the chest of Lawler. I don’t think this goes to a match, but I thought Dolph finally showed something different and used this segment to really make himself stand out as a heel. This was excellent use of everyone involved.

Nikki/Natalya Brawl - I am on record as being a fan of this angle. I thought the work these ladies did last week was excellent. This week was a poor follow-up. Nikki’s promo felt overscripted and not believable. Natty did what Natty usually does on the mic and laid an egg. Crazy Jealous Natty at the merch stand was ok, but not great. The only part of this that was good was the physical stuff. The fight was good, stiff, and believable. Everything else was not good.

Where are They? - Smackdown has done a good job of building young guys, but no follow up with Corbin on the biggest match of his life the week before? He was on Talking Smack and may have done the best mic work of his entire career in that segment, but the main audience didn’t see it. Oh and what direction are our tag champs going in? We have no idea because they weren’t on the show. I get that SD has a time crunch that RAW doesn’t, but that’s not an excuse. They could have easily spent two minutes doing a backstage promo with them where they get jumped by the Usos. Now you have their faces on TV and an idea where they are going, and you really lose nothing in terms of time. Young guys need to be featured regularly to keep them fresh on the audience's mind. This was a bad week to be one of the young Smackdown talents.

Orton vs. Ambrose - I really have no issue with the work in this match but rather why we were having this match. Ambrose and Orton have had little interaction, and that separation has the potential to make this a money match down the road. Instead of making it feel special and building a program, we get an unadvertised match that does nothing for either guy. The focal point was the Wyatt’s tension. They could have accomplished the same result with a guy like Crews or Kalisto. Ambrose was wasted in this as was the possible future money match.

So those were my bests and worsts from RAW and SmackDown this week. I'd love to hear your opinions, soJoin Our Discordor comment below and let me know what you think. Also, listen to The Rundown this week as I am sure I will be arguing some of these with my fellow co-hosts.